First video of where I've been training.

[jasowolfe4u]

Some of you know I've been training at my friends aquaculture site. Here's my first video production of this site. This was in December. Unfortunately I haven't been out since as the Gulf has been pretty violent lately. I'm looking forward to getting back in the water as soon as things calm down.

As far as the video, go easy on me. This was my first time. I realize I have a lot of work to do. I need better video lights, a bigger table and probably another 10 pounds of lead to keep the camera steady. I'm all for constructive criticism though, so fire away.

For some reason, the video didn't upload in HD. I gotta figure out why, unless anyone knows the answer.

I don’t really think this video is bad in any case, except for the spotlight in the middle as fjpatrum said. Like he advised you could have put a diffuser in that light, it might be much better. I’ve always dreamed of taking such a video, but yet to get a chance for that. My friend who is working in a video production team in Hamilton, with his friends once made a video like this which were too good and this video reminds me of them. Their team have made a lot of production videos and most of them are getting good feedbacks.

 

[CuzzA]

Ok, here's an update on the camera rig I built. Still waiting on the locline tees, more 1/2" locline and two more lights. Actually 4 "video" lights and I'll sell the two I'm currently using.

Nevertheless, I think it came out pretty good and will improve my videos a lot. Once I got into building it I deviated slightly from the original plan. I decided against PVC stock and used aluminum angle iron and stainless steel threaded whatchamacallits to hold the sand spikes. I found retainers for the spikes unnecessary as they self tighten and hold in place when not in use. I went with 1/8" aluminum stock rather than 1/4" to keep the weight down. I also added silicone tape to the PVC handles. I sealed the PVC in hopes the rig won't be too negative and cause arm fatigue. I still need to add some bolt snaps to clip it off when not in use. I would have liked to cut a slot in the sand spikes to make two equal horizontal bases but that would have been more trouble than it's worth.

I'll update a photo once I have everything else in and assembled.

 

[CuzzA]

I'll add I really like the sand spikes. Thank you @dumpsterDiver. As I was making it, it occured to me what a great tool it will be to video myself diving to see how well I maintain trim, good buoyancy and finning. It's been suggested to have another diver video you for evaluation purposes, but I know nobody wants to waste a dive videoing someone else dive. I know I wouldn't want to be that guy.

 

[dmoore19]

StiX Adjustable Buoyancy Jumbo Floats for Ultralight Strobe Arms

Weigh the rig in water and figure out how much lift you need.

These might be what you want to make your camera rig neutral.

 

[CuzzA]

Excellent. Im going to take it in the pool when the lights come in and test it out. I'm concerned 4 lights may be pretty negative, top heavy and unbalanced. Those look like a perfect solution.

 

[CuzzA]

UPDATE: (Named it the "Reef Octopus" for the 8 appendages coming off of it. Lol)

Ok, so my rig is pretty much done and I'm quite happy with it. I added my UV light to the top cross bar with a cheap eBay GoPro camera mount and a GoPro handle bar mount. I simply shaved off the plastic nut retainer on one of the mounts. I still get a noticeable hotspot with the UV light. I think it would be fine for macro shots, but I think I'm going to attempt to take it apart and paint the reflector white.

I will likely add a little flotation to it as it is now a little too negative. The video below is a test I did last night in the pool. Pitch black, under weighted in a 3 mil suit while dragging a 19 cu ft. pony on a 30" hose. Needless to say, the video is a little shaky as I was basically holding the rig with one hand. But the purpose was to test the video lights which I think did a superb job. With both hands free I would have adjusted them better to eliminate the slight shadowing in the corners of the frame.

I did not use the flip dive filter in this pool test. Also my pool, believe it or not, was a little cloudy from all of the rain and pollen we've been having. Which is good as I think it will be more like real ocean conditions.

Anyway, what do you think?

Video:

 

[JBFG]

Awesome! that looks great to me.
I'm building a rig too.
Quick question, what do you use to hold the Gopro in place? What adapter and screw?

 

[CuzzA]

Thanks. It's a GoPro tripod mount. Just pick up a 1/4" x 20 stainless steel bolt long enough to go through whatever you're mounting it to and you're all set. Although unlikely, a little blue loctite on the threads will prevent it from coming loose.

 

[CuzzA]

Just an FYI, this rig cost me about $50 to make minus the lights and camera. The lights are Chinese eBay Cree video lights from a California seller. They run $30 each including shipping.

The nice thing about the locline tees is they come with a perfect place to rig up a lanyard, retractor or boltsnap depending on how you want to secure it. As you can see I just put a single bolt snap on one side as I believe during a dive where I want to secure it I would just clip it off to a waist d ring. But on a wall dive or open water with a deep floor I would use two long tethers on either tee clipped to my shoulder d rings to prevent from accidentally losing it.

Also, not sure if I mentioned it before, but the connection between the sand spikes and angle iron is a nylon washer from Ace hardware. This works great for the sand spikes as it kind of serves as a bearing.

 

[CuzzA]

A little update on the buoyancy front...

I was at my local tackle shop the other day and spotted those little buoy floats the commercial guys use on nets and after handling them they seemed absolutely perfect for this application.

They are rock hard and after coring them out to fit on the locline I discovered they are essentially a hard foam and impregnated with some sort of rubbery epoxy. They are super buoyant and rocket to the surface when submerged and they displace very little water, literally sit on the surface.

The best part is they were $0.90 cents a piece. They come in a number of different sizes. I ended up with 8 floats rather than a fewer number only because I liked the slimmer diameter of this size.

I submerged my rig in the pool and while it did sink, it was very slow which makes me believe they would be almost neutral in saltwater.

I can clearly tell this will be a big improvement in stability and better quality video.

I'm going to give them a high gloss rattle can finish and I would say my rig is just about perfect.

One last thing will be to sew a neoprene beer coozie to size and attach a little shock cord to make a camera coat to protect the flip filters when not in use.

I would love to test this thing out this weekend, but once again it's going to be snotty. 15-20 knot winds and 4-6 ft. seas. Stupid! I just want to dive. :/